Board approves Scotts Run development in Tysons

Project will add 17 office, residential buildings around the McLean Metro Station

This rendering depicts a section of the Scotts Run South development, approved Tuesday, which will ultimately add 17 new office and residential buildings to the area around the McLean Metro Station in Tysons Corner.

A third major redevelopment project in Tysons Corner has gained the approval of the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors.

Scotts Run South will ultimately add 17 office and residential buildings around the McLean Metro Station, on the northeast side of Tysons.

The developer also will build a new fire station for the county by 2020, to serve growing needs in that section of Tysons as redevelopment occurs.

County supervisors praised the quality of the final redevelopment plan, saying that the collaboration between county staff and the developer resulted in a high-quality final product.

“Realizing the vision for Tysons requires collaboration,” said Board of Supervisor Chairwoman Sharon Bulova (D-At large), “this is a beautiful, beautiful application and something we welcome to Tysons Corner and Fairfax County.”

The Board of Supervisors approved a plan for Tysons in 2010 that envisions a pedestrian-friendly urban center for the county. The county anticipates that the area will be home to 100,000 people and 200,000 jobs by 2050.

Scotts Run South incorporates much of the current WestGate office park, one of the first office campuses built in Tysons, and will straddle the Scotts Run Stream Valley Park.

Most of the development will be on 23 acres on the east side of the park. This section can include six office buildings, six apartment buildings and a hotel, according to the land use plan approved Tuesday. Most of the buildings will feature shops and restaurants on the street level.

Another 7 acres on the other side of the park will include three high-rise office buildings and another apartment building.

In all, the plan allows for 6.5 million square feet of development, including about 1,400 apartments and 3.5 million square feet of office space. By comparison, the core of Reston Town Center has about 300 apartments and 2.1 million square feet of office space, according to its website.

Supervisor John Foust (D-Dranesville) said he was initially apprehensive about such a large redevelopment project on the edge of his district, but ultimately the project won the support of the McLean Citizens Association.

“I think they share my feeling that this is totally consistent with the vision we all approved for Tysons,” he said.

As part of the rezoning, developer Cityline Partners agreed to restore the Scotts Run stream and will also construct paths, a bridge and other features to allow people to use and enjoy the stream valley park.

There also will be five small urban parks and a large civic plaza incorporated into the new development that will include playgrounds and basketball courts. A new public athletic field will also be constructed near the site of the new fire station, on Old Meadow Lane.

Cityline intends to begin construction quickly on one section of the project: two residential buildings with up to 440 apartments between Chain Bridge Road and Anderson Road and a 340,000-square-foot office building in the MITRE office park.

The new buildings will “create an urban skyline” in Tysons, said Lynne Strobel, a Cityline representative.

Scotts Run South is the third major redevelopment plan to be approved around the four new Metro stations in Tysons. There are about a dozen more rezoning plans still going through the land use process.